Wiring

Although it appears complex, the wiring is actually fairly simple. There are a few key differences between your normal home computer.

We need to interface the car's power system. The car's power gives us a varying voltage (8-16V) depending on it's state (off, starting, running).

We want this system to automatically power up/down based on the state of the car. In particular, I want the computer to power on when I go into "Accessory mode" (ie: the point at which you can use your windows/stereo/etc). Similarly, the system should quietly shutdown when I pull the key out of the car.

Since we don't want the system to be visible, we need to put most of the system in the trunk of the car and bring the UI components (e.g. VGA LCD touchscreen and keyboard) and system connections (e.g. power and audio) up front.